Toy Story

Retail: Turner Toys opens brick-and-mortar warehouse

Turner Toys & Hobbies has been in operation since 1998, but shoppers have had to go online to browse its selection of wooden trains, yo-yos and puzzles — until now. Husband-and-wife owners Peter Sloan and Elizabeth Skinner, who purchased the business in 2011, began welcoming local shoppers to its Essex Junction warehouse in early April. With the closings of Learning Express and Vermont Toy & Hobby in Essex, says Sloan, "It suddenly seemed like there was an opening to have a toy store here." Don't expect much merchandise overlap with big-box stores; Turner Toys' spinning tops, brainteasers and rockets "look sort of like what you might find in a science museum gift shop," says Sloan. "These are the toys we grew up with."

Turner Toys & Hobbies: Located at 57 River Road in Essex Junction. For more information, visit turnertoys.com.